"Keep your head down" Good or bad advice?

[JustOne]

I'm just wondering what everyone's take is on this piece of advice good or bad?

"Keep your head down"

You don't necessarily have to expain your answer... it's not a test

 

[EaseNgrace]

Good, but 'keep your head still' may be better as if you focus on keeping it down too much it could cause you to dip your head down on the down swing.

 

[ADB]

For me, this is useful as I have a tendancy to stand up through impact which leads to pull/hooks if a get trapped on my back leg. Rather than keeping my head down, I prefer to think of keeping my head steady.

When I was learning as a boy, my dad would constanly go on about keeping my head down as I did have a tendancy to top the ball nicely. Drove me mad.

My feeling is that teaching this mantra would not encourage a free rotation and coil of the body. But what do I know!!

 

[DCB]

always good advice if there's a bit of a stramash going on

 

[JustOne]

always good advice if there's a bit of a stramash going on

stramash?.... hmmm, is that ANYTHING to do with oral sex?

 

[DCB]

It's from the Archie MacPherson Phrase Book..

means "a bit of a to do"

 

[JustOne]

hehe... stramash (I Googled it)... "keep your head down if there's a disturbance, racket, or crash"

Sounds like Italian advice (or even French), not Scottish!

 

[bigbiffa]

this is bad advice(i should know!), i think a drill(like puttting a coin down and keep looking at it) is a far better option,with the same result!

 

[Tiger]

Limited experience but in my book bad advice. Keep your head still is good. When I keep my head still I have a freer swing and proper follow through. When I keep my head down I get stuck at the end of the swing and don't get into a proper finish.

 

[Smiffy]

Good, but 'keep your head still' may be better

I had a few lessons with a bloody good pro at Lamberhurst Golf Club a few years ago. Scottish guy, called a spade a spade right enough.
I was chatting to him one day during a lesson and the subject of "head down" or "head still" came up.
He lined 6 balls up, took out my 6 iron and proceeded to walk up to each one and just hit it. He didn't stop, he carried on walking and his head obviously wasn't still, 'cos it was moving along with the rest of his body.
He hit every single 6 iron sweet as a nut about 180 or so yards up the practice ground.
And have you ever seen a trick shot exponent hit a golf ball? I doubt if he is standing still for one minute.

 

[Golfmmad]

For me I prefer, "keep your eye on the ball". Which I find really hard to do, and often after hitting a poor shot think to myself, I didn't look at the bloody ball!

Golfmmad.

 

[SharkAttack]

Good, but 'keep your head still' may be better as if you focus on keeping it down too much it could cause you to dip your head down on the down swing.

NO No No! This can cause a reverse pivot. You would be hard pushed to find someone flexible enough to keep there head still. You should keep your head level, it will move slightly back on the back swing and may even rotate slightly and then move forward through to impact to it's start position.

The reason for the reverse pivot is that if your head stays still it is very hard to transfer your weight to your back foot and as you swing through your weight transfers to your back foot.

PLEASE- No stack and tilters telling me you don't have to transfer your weight to the back foot.

 

[JustOne]

PLEASE- No stack and tilters telling me you don't have to transfer your weight to the back foot.

As I said... it's not a test.

So far we are at don't keep it down and don't keep it still...

or was it keep it down, but move it left to right?

or was it... don't keep it down, keeping it still is better, but move it too?

 

[RGDave]

NO No No! This can cause a reverse pivot. You would be hard pushed to find someone flexible enough to keep there head still. You should keep your head level, it will move slightly back on the back swing and may even rotate slightly and then move forward through to impact to it's start position.

I don't agree. There is a difference between taking a good posture and swinging without "lifting" your head and having your chin down and having no chance of making a good swing.
I keep my head down and I don't have a reverse pivot BUT I swing with my head in a decent place to start with.

 

[RGDave]

So far we are at don't keep it down and don't keep it still...

Some lateral movement is OK, some vertical movement is not advised.

That'd be my take.

 

[Tommo21]

For me I prefer, "keep your eye on the ball". Which I find really hard to do, and often after hitting a poor shot think to myself, I didn't look at the bloody ball!

Golfmmad.

Keep your eye on the ball is my thing too.

 

[JustOne]

Keep your eye on the ball is a good one... does that give you the freedom to do whatever you want with your head though?...up/down/left/right?

 

[RGDave]

Keep your eye on the ball is a good one... does that give you the freedom to do whatever you want with your head though?...up/down/left/right?

Are you on the wind up JOuk?

 

[Tommo21]

So far we are at don't keep it down and don't keep it still...

Some lateral movement is OK, some vertical movement is not advised.

That'd be my take.

Hogan and Tiger both have quite a bit of vertical movement and here it is for you all to see.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7fMBNxg2V4

 

[Imurg]

Christ Alive - I never thought hitting a golf ball was so complicated